


Lure of the Deep

by orphan_account



Category: the GazettE
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Kissing, M/M, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Mythology - Freeform, Mythology References, Sirens, caught mermaid, gay mermaid, hunter!reita, mermaid, mermaid au, mermaid hunting, mermaid!ruki
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-26
Updated: 2015-07-26
Packaged: 2018-04-11 09:13:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4429688
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Beware the mermaid's song<br/>It will have you yearning for the great blue sea, and beneath the mermaid lies in wait<br/>With eyes to seduce you and entice you further down<br/>Until you no longer belong to the land, and the sea will swallow you whole.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lure of the Deep

Beware the mermaid's song  
It will have you yearning for the great blue sea, and beneath the mermaid lies in wait  
With eyes to seduce you and entice you further down  
Until you no longer belong to the land, and the sea will swallow you whole.

"Kill on sight. It's kill or be killed."

Akira remembered his father's words of wisdom drilled into him since his early teens, since he first picked up a harpoon and went with the other village men on the fishing boats on the hunting trips to the small group of islands far from his homeland, only four dots of ink on crudely drawn maps. He shouldn't have been here, on one of the islands, but boredom pushed him out the door and down to the shore were his very own boat was anchored in the sand; small but sturdy against the sea.

It had taken him little under an hour to reach the first island, a place he had visited many times with his father and other hunters. Mermaids lived deep in these waters and the hunters would catch them off guard, when they came ashore and lay vulnerable amongst the rocky shore. Men had been hunting mermaids for decades, ever since fishermen from their small island village had begun to wash up on their shores; drowned at the hands of mermaids. Ever since he was a young boy fear of the mermaids had been installed in him through songs and scary stories told around the dinner table. "A mermaid will drown ya soon as look at ya," "Their nails are as sharp as a shark's tooth, and will drag you down to the bottom of the ocean." Mermaids were vicious creatures, more deadly than sharks; a shark is your friend but a mermaid is your enemy.

He shouldn't have been here.

But what Akira saw made him completely disregard all the fear, all the warnings he had been told.

Because there was a mermaid, with skin as pale as deep sea pearls, hair the same yellow-gold as sand, nails as sharp as a shark's tooth and a crimson tail that sparkled gold in the dying sunlight, caught in a fishing net in the water amongst the rock pools, his voice - as beautiful as an angel's lullaby - crying out in pain and fear. Because this beautiful creature was staring right at him, hazel eyes piercing through him like the blade of a harpoon, and Akira could feel his fear.

He took a step towards him, the mermaid baring sharp teeth and hissing, struggling against the strong netting and drawing back as Akira clambered over the seaweed covered rocks towards him. He jumped down into the rock pool, the water staining his jeans black as it lapped at his knees. When Akira pulled out the penknife from his back pocket the mermaid parted his red lips and let out a panicked cry that almost sounded human, his tail flipping up out of the water and almost hitting Akira as he struggled to get away.

Going against everything he had been taught, Akira held out his hand to the mermaid, palm facing down and fingers spread out in a non-threatening manner, and said in a soft voice, "It's okay. My name's Akira. I'm not going to hurt you, I'm going to get you free." He didn't know if the mermaid could understand Japanese, but it seemed to do the trick, as the mermaid only watched with cautious eyes as Akira reached down to begin cutting the netting.

The netting was wrapped tightly around the mermaid's chest, pinning his arms to his side and flattening the large red fin that ran down his spine painfully against his back. As Akira slowly but surely cut through the netting with the penknife, he studied the creature before him. On both sides of the mermaid's neck were three gills, currently sealed closed against his skin as he took shaky breathes through his mouth. His tail started where his hips would be if he were human; pale skin flawlessly transforming into red scales. On both sides, at the area were his thighs would be, a small fin fluttered in the water. The mermaid's tail was long and heavy looking, but the mermaid moved it effortlessly in the water, bending it in ways that human legs couldn't. The mermaid raised his tail, his large tail fin rising out of the water a little, and Akira noticed that the tail fin was thin; the same deep red as his scales transforming into a thin membrane in the shape of a V.

Finally, Akira cut through the last of the netting, letting it drop to the rock pool floor. As soon as he was free, the mermaid twisted his body around, the dorsal fin on his back rising to stand up straight like a sail, grabbed the top of the rocks and pulled himself over; only for his arms to give out from underneath him, and he fell back into the rock pool with a grand splash.

Akira returned the knife to his back pocket, and climbed onto the rocks. He bent down, offering his hand for the mermaid to take. "Here, I'll help you," he said, but the mermaid still watched him with caution. Akira realized that he must be cautious of the penknife, so he held up both hands to prove that he had nothing to hide. "See? No knife," he said, extending his hand once again.

Deciding that Akira wasn't much of a threat, the mermaid took his hand and let the human pull him up; but the mermaid was heavy, so Akira had to wrap his arms around the mermaid's torso, careful not to squash his dorsal fin, and use all his strength to pull him up and over the rocks. The mermaid clung to him, face pressed against Akira's chest and his nails digging painfully into the human's back; his tail flopping about in the cold air, before Akira's strength gave out and he had to place the mermaid down onto the rocks. Fortunately, the rocks were flat on top, so the mermaid could sit comfortably enough; but the sea was further out, and the path ahead was nothing but seaweed-covered rocks.

Akira didn't think that the mermaid would be comfortable flopping his way to the sea, so he knelt down beside him and said; "If you let me, I can carry you."

The mermaid stared back with wide eyes, and Akira wondered once again if he could understand him, before he nodded and lifted his tail for Akira to slip his arm under; and Akira slid his other arm underneath his dorsal fin to support the mermaid's back, before he stood and felt the full weight of the mermaid pressing down on him.

Akira took an unsteady step forward, almost toppling over, and the mermaid yelped and threw his arms around Akira's shoulders, his nails digging into Akira's shoulder blades and his face pressed in fear against the human's neck, not wanting to be dropped. Akira took a deep breath, thinking how weird it was to have a mermaid clinging onto him. The strain on his arms pushed him forward, and he began to slowly make his way across the rocks, to where they ended abruptly and the sea began. Eventually, he made it to the water's edge, and before he could say anything; the mermaid pushed away from him and dove headfirst into the sea.

Akira was left standing on the rocks, wet from the grand splash the mermaid had caused, watching the dark sea swell and crash against the rocks beneath him.

Suddenly, a blonde head appeared, bobbing in the water a few metres away. The mermaid dove down again, swimming through the dark waters to the shore were Akira stood. He motioned for Akira to come closer.

Akira remembered the warnings to never let a mermaid get their hands on you, that as soon as they did they would pull you under the waves and drown you in the deep sea. But Akira was drawn to this mermaid, it was a pull that he couldn't resist, that he didn't want to resist, he realised; so he kneeled down, and what the mermaid did made his heart beat double quick. The mermaid reached up, soft fingers gently clutching Akira's face, and with a flick of his tail he pushed himself up out of the water; and pressed his lips against Akira's own. Akira shut his eyes and gasped, the mermaid swallowing the noise whole, as his red lips nipped and sucked Akira's. It was like nothing Akira had experienced before. The mermaid's lips were so soft and full, and fitted so perfectly against his own that Akira thought that maybe this was meant to be. But then the mermaid was pulling away, and Akira reached out to pull him back, to have his lips pressed against his own once again, but he clutched at nothing but air and when he opened his eyes only the dark sea greeted him.

So Akira was left standing on the rocky shore, wind whipping through his hair and sea spray stinging his cheeks, as he stared out at the dark sea, wishing the beautiful red-tailed mermaid back because he had fallen in love with him.


End file.
